Teacher wants students to be world citizens

PORTSMOUTH — High school teacher Helaine Wemple is leading a charge to create "citizens of the world" in her classroom and beyond.

Joey Cresta

PORTSMOUTH — High school teacher Helaine Wemple is leading a charge to create "citizens of the world" in her classroom and beyond.

Wemple, who teaches Spanish, geography and service learning at Portsmouth High School, went on a paid sabbatical last year as part of a project to infuse world language and culture into the existing curricula at schools in School Administrative Units 50 and 52. During the sabbatical, which ran from the fourth quarter last school year through the first quarter this school year, Wemple met with staff at the schools, conducted cultural surveys, organized a world culture week and facilitated a group of high school students who went into the elementary schools to provide Spanish lessons to students.

Her sabbatical also included a 10-day trip to the Osa Peninsula of Costa Rica. Nine other teachers from Portsmouth High, Little Harbour, Rye Elementary, Greenland Central and Newington Public schools accompanied her on the trip. Wemple said the experience challenged the teachers by taking them out of their comfort zones, especially the home-stay aspect, which had them living with locals in Costa Rican villages.

"The home part for me was really tough and I didn't enjoy it, to be honest with you, but I think it was one of the most important pieces of the trip," said Kate Fitzpatrick, a high school English teacher who participated in the experience.

While in Costa Rica, Fitzpatrick said, she forged relationships with her colleagues that she never would have otherwise. She said the conversations they had and the things they saw, from natural beauty to rural poverty, have helped her become a better educator.

"I really loved the experience and I really admire Helaine for her work with this," she said.

Jonathan Dowling, a social studies teacher at Greenland Central School, said the experience helped him gain more credibility with his students.

"You become much more authoritative," he said. "When I teach my kids about Latin America, I have a little more experience (to draw on)."

He noted that the work only continues from here, as a professional learning community (PLC) of teachers committed to continuing the discussion developed out of the trip. Those teachers meet periodically to discuss the best ways to bring world cultures to their students.

"It really does define what (a PLC) should be: teachers working cooperatively on the same goal to educate students in a meaningful way," Dowling said.

For Wemple, the interest in creating global citizens goes beyond the fact she teaches a foreign language. She said her students, although located in a demographically homogenous region, are growing up in an increasingly global world, and equipping them with an awareness of that will help them succeed.

"The world is global all around us," she said. "The more understanding you have, the more open you will be to other cultures. You can also learn a lot about yourself."

Wemple and Dowling left on Thursday with 14 students on a week-long trip back to Costa Rica. This is the eighth time Wemple has taken students on the service learning trip.

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